Til Death Must We Part
by Shin-Shui
Summary: After Phantom is given the job title of "Death", Danny's own life seems to be going on pretty normally. But when Danny's own name suddenly appears on Phantom's list of those whose life he must take, will Phantom be able to do it? Duty Vs Emotion. KPls 4nw


Hola! How's everyone doing on this lovely day or night? Good? That's good! I mean, if you're reading FanFiction you MUST be in a good mood! XD Anyways...I've been mulling this idea over for a bit of a while now, and I decided to present it to you guys and see what you all think! I like it, I think it's pretty unique, but...I want to work on SHYWI, SSIB before I start any new major products, but if I get enough response, I might try and work on both for you all! Anyways, enough with my blathering. You guys must be sick of hearing from me by now. Always with the complaining and the Cheese Wheels and **the Danny Phantom not being mine** and whatnot. But...this is my little opportunity to speak to you, so I like to let you all know what's going on. Anyways, without further adieu, let me introduce to you..."'Til Death Must We Part"!

**Legal Disclaimer: **If I MUST say it once again...check in this paragraph. ^- It's in there somewhere. Have fun. XD

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"Living in Amity Park, you get to learn a few things.

One.) Nasty Burger is just about the best place for food you'll find.

Two.) If you have any spare time at all, it's best spent at the Mall.

and Three.) Ghosts tend to terrorize you quite a bit, so always be ready for when one shows up."

Danny Fenton sat at his computer, attempting to type up an English paper for his teacher, Mr. Lancer. His assignment was to 'write about what Amity Park is like to live in, including details of the 'hippest spots' (Lancer's slang seemed to be quite a bit out of date) and what day-to-day life is like. Of course, when you fight ghosts for a living, and have psychotic ghost-hunting parents...It tends to not seem that fun a place to visit. He had two okay statements so far, but for his third, he just couldn't think of something to write.

"Visiting the library is-pffft. Lancer would never believe I go to the library of my own free will," Danny laughed at the line, realizing how ridiculous it was before it was even finished.

"Maybe you should just write about being a ghost-hunter and all that," his spectral double appeared before him in a shadowy presence, that was obviously taking a lot of focus to maintain.

"Yeah, and have them lock me up in a psyche ward. Thanks, Phantom. I appreciate your help, man," Danny gave him a thumbs up, and then smiled sarcastically.

"Fine, fine...don't accept my help."

"Sorry, sorry..." Danny groaned, putting his elbows on his desk as he ran his fingers through his hair, "I didn't mean to shoot the messenger."

"...You know...you can't really apply that here..."

Danny gazed up at Phantom.

"I'll apply it anywhere I want to, jerk," Danny stuck out his tongue, the battle having been won in his mind.

"A little childish, don't you think?"

"Lalalalalalalala," Danny began chanting, "I can't heaaar youuu."

"Whatever. I'm just trying to help you so you don't have to stay up all night AGAIN."

"Alright, alright..." Danny stopped chanting, "I'm sorry. I just get so stressed out. Between battling ghosts with you, School with Lancer and Dash  
and all those other jerks, and dealing with Jazz's psychotic over-bearing-protective-sister-modes, Mom and Dad's plain old psychotic ghost-hunting ones, and Tucker and Sam's...well...they don't cause me problems, really. But...same difference."

"I know, I know...you always have your plate full. But...there's not much else you can do besides try your best."

"Yeah...thanks, Phantom..." Danny sighed, "I'm just gonna lay down for a while, I'll talk to you later."

"Alright..." Phantom responded as he dissipated into thin air.

Danny sighed. Phantom was right. Again. He couldn't do anything but try. Try, try, try, try, try. It sickened him. He could never 'do'. Only 'try'. He sighed once more, closing his eyes as he tried to fall asleep and forget about his town and the paper he had to write about it.

**~~~~~~~~~DxP PxD DxP PxD DxP PxD DxP PxD DxP PxD~~~~~~~~~**

As the clock stroked to Midnight, Danny laid fast asleep on his bed. Nothing seemed to be out of the normal until a golden clock's outline appeared around his body. The minute and hour hands slowly swirled around it, ticking as the clock began to revolve and envelop the boy in a golden white light.

"Hu-What?" Danny woke up startled as the golden light surrounded him.

A final chime was heard as the spinning stopped, the golden light now an aura around him. Within a split second, the aura disappeared and Danny appeared within Clockwork's Castle sitting before Clockwork himself.

"Ah, Danny."

"Ah, Danny?" Danny stood up and brushed himself off. His pajamas looked dark and raggedy within the interior of the castle, "You teleport me to your castle while I'm in the middle of sleeping and all I get is an "Ah, Danny?"

"Yes, well. I am quite sorry about that. I would have waited, I did know that you were sleeping after all, I do control time," Clockwork babbled on, mentioning his control over time to Danny yet another time, "But...this was urgent."

"So urgent the future would have changed if you'd waited until it was a decent hour to wake me up?"

"I suppose not, but seeing as how urgent this news is, I believed it best to not hesitate."

"Okay, so what's your 'big news'," Danny asked, rubbing his eyes to wake himself up.

"I've just been informed by the Watchers that the Grim Reaper, or rather, Death, as you know him...has finally completed his job."

"Completed his job? What does that mean?" Danny asked, the word 'job' being used to describe the Grim Reaper not making sense to him.

"Well, you see...every century or so, a new Grim Reaper is chosen. The Grim Reaper's job is to, as you know, send a person's soul on to the spirit realm once their time on Earth runs out."

"Okay, I understand so far," Danny replied, none of this being new knowledge to him.

"Yes, well, our current Death has completed this job."

"...What does that mean, though?" Danny asked once more, "Does this mean there's no more death?" the thought of no more death sickened and relieved him at the same time.

"Yes, well...that's how it might be in a perfect world...but no. You see, each century, when the new Grim Reaper has been selected...his job is to send spirits on. However, there's more to his job than that. You see, the Grim Reaper's main job is to safely ensure that everyone alive at the time he's selected to become the new Reaper safely moves on."

"So...after everyone the Grim Reaper ever knew or loved or cared is dead, he finally gets to move on himself?"

"Yes...while this may seem cruel...it is but how the world continues going on as normal."

"So...where does dragging me to your castle fit into all this," Danny asked, a queasy feeling building up in his stomach.

"Yes, well, you see, Danny..." Clockwork paced back and forth, his form changing with every few steps, "the Grim Reaper is supposed to be, or rather was originally, a punishment for those souls that caused immense pain to those in their life..." he pacing stopped, "But as you can imagine...if they didn't care for people in their normal life...they had even less sympathy for them in their after-life."

Danny nodded, the thought making him shiver.

"So, you see...the Watchers decided about ten or eleven centuries ago...to give this role to one of the more nobler beings"-Danny shivered once again, trying to avoid hearing what he knew was next-"such as yourself."

"D-Death?" he stuttered, the fear of having to claim the lives of those he loved petrifying him, "M-Me? I can't kill people. I mean...I...I hurt ghosts I guess..but...I don't...I can't kill..."

"Yes, well...the Watchers had a slight problem with _you_ specifically...you see...Death must be a ghost. If a ghost isn't the one granted the powers of the Grim Reaper...it will either turn the human into a berserker or...it will kill them."

Danny gulped.

"So...you see...they couldn't choose _you_ specifically..."

Danny smiled on the inside. He wasn't going to be Death. But...wait...why was he called here then?

Clockwork paced back and forth once more.

"So, you see...they thought of an idea..."

He stopped pacing once more and stared directly at Danny.

"They decided to strip you of your ghost powers, effectively making you a full human, and therefore not a candidate at all."

"What? But they can't do that?"

"The Watchers do what they think they must to protect the natural balance of things. However...that's not what you're going to hate."

"What is it?" Danny could feel an even bigger knot forming in his stomach, realizing he _Really_ needed to stop talking.

"You see, after they strip you of your ghost side...they're going to give him his own body."

"Wait...so...Phantom...is going to be real? Like me?"

"Well, he'll be a full ghost now, rather than having a half human body...but...yes."

Phantom, who had been awake and listening this entire time, said nothing.

"So...wait...you're going to force Phantom to leave me...and then force upon him the job I can't do?"

"I am powerless in this regard. The Watcher's have chosen this destiny for the two of you, not I."

"Well, is it the right destiny for us?" Danny nearly yelled before remembering to try and always stay calm when dealing with people like the Watchers or Walker or Clockwork.

"That...I cannot say."

"What do you mean you can't stay?"

"It's a destiny that hasn't been written yet. After all...it splits your one destiny into two separate ones.

"This is..." Danny began, pacing about, "No, they can't do this! I've done too much already, and Phantom...he...he's the one that always suffers anyways! They can't do this. They can't!"

"I'm sorry, Danny," Clockwork apologized, his middle aged form appearing, "but there's nothing I can do to stop them now that they've decided."

Danny began to cry, the realization of what was occurring hitting him.

"It's alright, Danny," Phantom finally spoke.

"Phantom? You've been awake?"

Phantom appeared before the two of them, turning to Clockwork.

"Tell them I'm ready. I'll take this job...so that Danny doesn't ever have to."

"Phantom, please!"

"I'm sorry, Danny. But I've been with you for so long now that I know it would kill you to have to do this yourself. At least I'm not the one that loves them, or that's friends with them, or anything else."

"Listen to yourself, Phantom! You are! You're just as much a son, or a friend, or a student as I am!"

"I'm sorry, Danny. But...this has to happen."

With that, the Watchers appeared beside Clockwork.

"Ah, good. You've brought him here, Clockwork."

"Yes, well...that much had to be done regardless of the future."

"And you've explained it to him?"

"Yes."

"Good. We'll separate the two entities now, then."

"No, I won't let you do this!" Danny sobbed, trying to run as Phantom's will locked him in place.

"They're right, Danny...they have to do this now," Phantom sighed, 'Before I try and fight this too...'

"No, please...!"

"We are truly sorry," the Watchers responded, gathering around Danny, "But this is for the sake of keeping order within our Universes."

Danny was surrounded with another light, not much unlike the one that brought him to Clockwork's Castle in the first place. However, what occurred when the light vanished was completely different.

Beside him stood a ghostly white figure, the embodiment of himself all those times he changed into his ghost form. However, Phantom's normal suit was missing. Instead, he was covered in a shadowy cloak, a large scythe's handle firmly within his hand. The handle went up, leading to a menacing crescent-moon blade that curved down in the middle.

As Danny stood up, dazed, confused, and upset, he slowly began to come to.

Phantom looked around, everything being in an entirely different perspective than from when he was in Danny's body.

The Watchers lowered their hands, and their leader soon spoke.

"'Phantom'...you are now the new Grim Reaper."

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**HOSNAP**. Y'all didn't see that comin' didjas (It wasn't clearly in the description! *gasp* XD). But I liked it. I thought it was good. I think this is GOING PLACES. YEAH. Be warned, there's prolly gonna be some slight PitchPearl slash (well, there is...so be warned. xD) but...not much. At least, not how I'm planning it yet. Anyhow, I just wanted to alert you to this so that when it finally did come up you wouldn't be like "OH GOD. DID HE REALLY?"  
But yeah. XD Please! Tell me what you thought of it! I did this in about 45 mins, so it might not be as good as it COULD be, but I wanted to get the idea rolling. So, if you like it, please leave me a review and tell me where you'd like to see it go!

But thanks for always sticking by me guys. I appreciate it. Until next time, ~Shin-Shui~.


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